Cambyses II Cambyses II was the oldest son of Cyrus II the Great. Cambyses was brought to the throne when he was just a boy, that why he was called Cambyses II Boy-King of Persia.
Before Cambyses was king and his father dead, Cyrus the Great appointed him King of Babylon; no one really knows why. He ruled Babylon for one year, and then his father the king died, so he was crowned king. His reign started in 559 BCE and ended 530 BCE from his untimely death. |
Marriage Cambyses II married Phaedymia, the daughter of Otanes, and they had several kids. Otanes (father of Phaedymia) was the brother of Cambyses' mother, so Cambyses could have very well married his cousin. It was not uncommon to do so.
Later his son, Darius I, had married Cambyses' sisters. Darius had married two of his aunts. |
Conquest of Egypt Right before Cambyses II went to take Egypt, he secretly had his brother, Smerdis, murdered. Then Cambyses quickly went after Egypt. no one really knows why he killed his brother. He might have bribed an Egyptian admiral because that same admiral was standing next to him right after the conquest. and Ctesias of Cnidus mentions a traitor among the Egyptians that lead to the overthrowing. That same admiral helped Cambyses II act like a true native Egyptian king to help the Egyptians. When Egypt was conquered, each soldier was "rewarded" their own Egyptian slave as a gift.
Later when Cambyses was trying to expand, near the Agean Sea he had found a town called "market of Cambyses" that was a fortified trading place for the Persians, Egyptians and Kushites. Cambyses II had wanted to lead a conquest for Kush, but he decided not to because Egypt had not fully stabilized yet; it would have been unwise.
|